Lincoln's words unify Americans, in spite of our differences

One of this country's most valued presidents, Abraham Lincoln, was born on Feb. 12. 1809. He was a self-educated man who even taught himself enough about the law to become a practicing lawyer and a political leader. He was known for his rugged humor and his strong sense of honesty ("Honest Abe"). When he became president, his most important goals were to preserve, protect and defend the Union. Later, he acted to end slavery in the Confederate States by issuing the Emancipation Proclamation on Jan. 1, 1863.

The words he wrote in his Gettysburg Address have spoken to generations of Americans, especially in times of war and crisis: "...that we here highly resolve that these dead have not died in vain -- that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom, and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the Earth."

In his Second Inaugural Address, Lincoln showed his generous and kind spirit: "With malice toward none, with charity for all, with firmness in the right, as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in, to bind up the nation's wounds..."

Lincoln gave his life to hold together this country's diverse people, their separate states and their divisive views. He believed that the unity of the Union could only be maintained when most of its citizens shared the same political, moral and work values.

In modern terms, if diversity is to be America's strength today, then it must be a diversity built not on any multicultural, politically correct quota system, but on a strength that is built on the teaching of the traditional democratic American values that made this republic strong for over 200 years.

The memory of all that Lincoln gave this country should teach and unify America today and in the days ahead.